Stories

Throughout the civil rights movement in Atlanta, soul food restaurants were hubs of change where civil rights leaders could convene, converse, and strategize, and in times of terror and violence, these places were retreats where leaders could plan their next tactical moves.

Norfolk Southern, one of the nation’s major railroad systems, recently relocated its headquarters to Atlanta. The company celebrated its move with a major donation of archival materials from predecessor company Southern Railway to Atlanta History Center. We look back on the history of Southern Railway and reflect on the importance of this iconic railroad to Atlanta and the Southeast.

Luckie Street in downtown Atlanta is commonly thought to be named after Solomon Luckie. Luckie was one of Atlanta’s first Black entrepreneurs and was tragically killed by shrapnel during the Civil War. Learn more about Luckie in our Atlanta Streets series.

The original Rich’s twin pig monorails and their iconic smiles made Christmas bright for five generations. The Pink Pig lives on in the hearts and minds of everyone who experienced it—and in the permanent collection at Atlanta History Center.

Find out if there are Druids in Druid Hills or what Ponce de Leon Avenue has to do with the Spanish explorer in the latest installment in our Atlanta Streets series that takes a look at street names in Atlanta with mystical and curious origins.

Meet Jasmine Nicole—printmaker, muralist, and 2021 Midtown Heart of the Arts artist-in-residence.

The magic of the holidays is in full bloom at Atlanta History Center. Explore our 33 acres of Goizueta Gardens and enjoy these native plant species known for spreading holiday cheer. 

Celebrate Atlanta’s rich musicality with this tour of places with ties to hip-hop history.

This month in 1987, Cuban immigrants who had been indefinitely detained at the Atlanta federal penitentiary rioted when they learned the U.S. government planned to return them to Fidel Castro’s Cuba. They held more than 100 prison employees hostage for 11 days and burned part of the prison in an effort to negotiate new immigration trials.

Board of Park Commission Minute Books hold significant information, reflecting the intersectionality of race, gender, and class in urban spaces during the early twentieth century.

November is National Adoption Month. This month we recognize Atlanta trailblazer Carrie Steele Logan. After being enslaved, Logan went on to establish the Carrie Steele-Pitts Home, the country’s first orphanage for Black children. 

In partnership with the Trust for Public Land, Atlanta History Center featured an onsite display in the Don and Neva Dixon Rountree Visual Vault about the history of the Chattahoochee River. Spanning from indigenous life to current uses, the exhibit highlights artifacts and archival materials that show the diversity and use of the Chattahoochee River over the course of human habitation.

The USCT was comprised of 135 regiments of infantry soldiers. In addition to infantry, the USCT had 13 heavy artillery, six cavalry, and a light artillery regiment. The people of color who were not allowed to enlist, such as women, helped the war effort by being cooks, spies, nurses, and scouts.

We created a guide to help Georgians prepare to exercise their right to vote, select the method by which they vote, and to identify and report instances of voter intimidation––on November 2 and beyond.